


Take a Big Bite

by Sami_Fire



Category: Promare (2019)
Genre: Chubby Lio, M/M, Promare Big Burn 2020, discussion of weight/eating habits
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2020-05-25
Updated: 2020-05-24
Packaged: 2021-03-02 19:41:35
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 11
Words: 20,136
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/24362236
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/Sami_Fire/pseuds/Sami_Fire
Summary: As he finally adjusts to a life of peace, Lio enjoys the little luxuries his new life has to offer. Being pampered with food, sleep, and affection has done well for him, but the side effect to taking in so much pleasure is that he's gained a decent amount of weight. Lio melts down when the pleasure honeymoon comes to a halt, and Galo does his best to care for him while he spirals. Galo's hope is that Lio can be comfortable in his own skin again.Part of the Promare 2020 Big Burn! Features art by Treah/Treaharts on Twitter!
Relationships: Gueira/Meis (Promare), Lio Fotia/Galo Thymos
Comments: 2
Kudos: 39
Collections: Promare Big Burn 2020





	1. Eat, Sleep, and Be Merry

Lio found himself looking forward to snack time whenever he could squeeze it in.

On his days off, he took the time to eat and sleep to his heart’s content. It had taken him quite some time to get used to the idea that he could do either of those things without consequences, but after the initial resistance, Galo had managed to rewire him to take better care of himself. It hadn’t been so long ago that he was a survivalist on the run, sacrificing his needs to ensure his people survived. The programmed habits to save food for others and to stay awake in case anything happened were hard to break, but somehow, Galo broke them.

So now, Lio made sure to eat when he was hungry and sleep when he was tired. His life was peaceful now, settled into a routine of helping Burning Rescue out during the week and enjoying Galo’s company on the weekends, with occasional post-Burnish activism scattered throughout. After a certain point, events calling for his presence tapered off, and so he was left with idle days at home to enjoy his new life.

The other day, Galo had brought home a bag of chocolates as a treat for him, and the only reason Lio had let it sit for that long was because he’d occupied the previous days with other treats Galo had brought home. Today, it was the chocolate’s turn, and so he sat on the couch, savoring the milk chocolate sweetness every way he could. Some he’d let melt in his mouth, others he would just chomp down on. All the time spent without consistent access to sweets made the ones he was getting now taste all that much better.

After a while, Lio started trying to invent new ways to extract the chocolate from the wrappers, only to end up with a mouth full of foil every time. He could swear he’d seen someone unwrap these chocolates in their mouth and pull out the wrapper seductively, but he couldn’t pull it off himself. So much for thinking of new and fun ways to seduce Galo when he came around.

Soon enough, Galo did come around, heading to the living room from washing dishes in the kitchen. He shot Lio a look that was both amused and confused. “What, are you so hungry that you’ve started eating the foil now, too?” he quipped.

“Of course not,” Lio scoffed as he swept away the decent pile of crumpled foil balls that had formed over the course of his grazing. “Just because I’ve started to enjoy eating again doesn’t mean I consume all forms of matter I can get my hands on.”

“What do you mean? Are you saying you’re not Matter Eater Lad?” Galo gave a short laugh, a boisterous sound. “I’ve seen you go to town on my cooking and the leftover pizza. You can really put ‘em away when you put your mind to it. Sometimes, I worry you’re going to eat the plate, too.”

Lio sighed and waved Galo off. “Cut that out. You’re the one who’s made sure I’ve had enough to eat, anyway, whether I wanted it or not.” His gaze flicked over to the pile of foil balls that he hadn’t quite pushed far enough away. “You should be happy. You fought hard to get me to quit living by my old rules, and you won.”

“It’s not a matter of winning,” Galo said. “I was just trying to get you to take care of yourself now that you weren’t on the run anymore. Not gonna lie though, I’m glad you eat your lunches instead of hoarding them all in the Burning Rescue fridge.”

“Yes, because now I actually get hungry for lunch,” Lio muttered. “Getting used to normal life is still hard for me sometimes, but…” A small smile crept across his face, and he beckoned for Galo to come closer. “I’ve stopped minding when you spoil me. I’ve come to enjoy it. In fact, why don’t you spoil me some more?”

“What’s that? Lio wants some good Galo lovin’s?” Laughing at his own attempt at subtle wordplay, Galo plopped down on the couch and wedged himself behind Lio, wrapping his arms around him. “Please. Half the things you consider ‘spoiling’ are just things that any person should be able to enjoy.”

“Well, thanks to you, I enjoy them all quite a bit,” Lio said, leaning back into Galo’s chest. “You really have won. You’ve gotten me to enjoy what I didn’t have before: good food, good sleep, good feelings… and since I didn’t have them for so long, I can’t help but enjoy them intensely.”

“You deserve to enjoy them intensely,” Galo said as his hands snuck under Lio’s shirt, resting on his belly. “Aw, your tummy is so soft and smooth,” he cooed.

“Hm?” Lio had a lot of conflicting feelings about being called soft, with the primary impulse being to insist that he was not soft. Smooth, yes, but soft implied that he was fluffy or had “gone soft,” so to speak, and he wasn’t about to let that go. “I am not soft.”

“Nah, you are.” Galo grinned as he geared up to tease Lio. “You filled out a bit since you started eating properly. You’re like a blanket that finally got washed and dried! Now you’re all soft and warm and fluffy.”

“I… what?” Lio pulled up his shirt to take a look at himself. It wasn’t as if he was unaware that he’d put on some weight in these tranquil times, with consistent access to food and rest. He’d just put his concerns on the back burner so he could enjoy himself and avoid some tension. Still, he looked at Galo’s hands resting on the arc of his belly, and he began to wonder what the true state of affairs was. The sensation was not terribly unlike waking up from a pleasant dream to a cold bedroom.

“It’s not a bad thing. You were way too skinny before. It’s actually kind of nice to not feel your ribs so clearly when I touch you.” To punctuate the point, Galo’s right hand snaked upward to touch around Lio’s ribs. “See? Not so bad. C’mon, stop looking at yourself like that and get comfy.”

“Hm.” The gears in Lio’s head were starting to turn as he mulled things over. He released his grip on his shirt and adjusted himself in Galo’s hold to sit on his lap. “I should be glad that you make such a good seat. You’re perfectly sturdy and, dare I say it, soft.”

Galo laughed the reversed compliment off. “Glad I can be a good chair for you! See, I don’t mind being soft for you. You shouldn’t mind being soft for me, either,” he said as he gave Lio a squeeze.

“You make it hard to mind,” Lio muttered. His attention went to where his hands were resting by his thighs. He’d always had muscular legs, even for his slender frame, but something seemed different somehow. He was wearing loose sweatpants, and he wasn’t sure if it was the sweatpants or something else, but somehow his legs looked different. Flatter, maybe, or more spread out. The thought put a strange itch in the back of his mind, but he decided to wait to scratch it.

Galo had a way of being perfectly distracting at all the right times. "So? Are you happy?" he asked, his fingers rubbing gentle circles along Lio's stomach. He leaned forward to rest his chin on his partner's shoulder, softly nuzzling his neck.

"Yes," Lio purred, tilting his head as a way of nuzzling back. “I’m very happy. I’m full of your affection… and chocolate. Lots of chocolate.” He gave a dry chuckle at his own bad joke.

“I don’t know what you were doing with the foil over there, but that looks like you’ve got half a bag’s worth of wrappers over there,” Galo said, adjusting himself to look at the foil pile.

“Hmm, really?” Lio felt a twinge of anxiety pass through him. Half a bag was a conservative estimate. He’d gone through a fair amount of the chocolate in the bag just to savor the taste before he’d started the whole experiment with unwrapping the foil and plowed through a sizable amount more. “Couldn’t be,” he mumbled, the worrisome itch at the back of his mind making itself known once more.

“Eh, it doesn’t really matter,” Galo said, waving Lio’s worries off. “We’ll burn it off later, together.”

“Will we, now?” Lio picked up on what Galo was laying down. “Wouldn’t you like to feed me while we have our fun?” He knew where he was going with that suggestion, even as he felt mildly guilty about making it, and he ended up getting the intended response.

Galo sighed, his gaze going towards the foil wrappers one more time. “Is this about me liking to watch you eat again? I thought we were over this.”

Lio laughed despite himself. “You still do though, don’t you? Why else do you keep bringing home bags of chocolate and slices of cake and those gigantic honey buns? You always tell me you prefer savory flavors more.”

“Uh.” It was Galo’s turn to look caught in the act. “You just want to hear me say I like watching you eat! Fine, I do, but it’s not like I get off to the thought of you eating or whatever.”

The second half of the statement made Lio chuckle all over again. “I wouldn’t be surprised, honestly. We’ve played around with this before.”

“It’s more like you get excited by food than I get excited by watching you eat, so shush,” Galo grumbled, giving Lio’s stomach a light prod. “Hey, you feel, uh, full? Yeah, full.”

“Is that so?” Lio swallowed nervously. He’d only been able to repel the worrying mental itch for about two minutes before it came back again in full force. He made a mental list of everything he’d eaten that day: cereal in the morning, several slices of leftover pizza for lunch, the two sweet rolls he’d been eyeballing all day, a banana nut muffin that he declared abandoned, some spare cookies while waiting for Galo to come home, and then the chocolate incident. No, it probably wasn’t surprising that he was a little bloated. It was embarrassing, however.

Galo shrugged. “I’d rather you eat your fill than starve yourself out of obligations that don’t exist anymore. I’m glad you stopped worrying about when you’d be ‘actually hungry’ or when someone else might need food.”

Lio made an ambivalent noise. “Well, now I eat and everyone’s happy with it.” The statement came out blunter in tone than he intended, but he couldn’t hide his feelings forever.

“You don’t sound happy with it,” Galo said, catching on. “I want you to be comfortable, so if something’s bugging you, tell me, all right?”

“Well…” Lio averted his gaze as he attempted to put together words that he wasn’t sure he should. “It’s not about me being uncomfortable. I’m just wondering about something.”

“Okay, what is it?” Galo’s expression became more solemn. He always took Lio’s comfort very seriously.

Lio sucked in a breath and spat the question out before it could retreat from his lips. “Does it look like I’ve been eating more than usual lately?”

It was Galo’s turn to look nervous. “Do you want the honest answer or the answer that won’t make you throw a fit?”

“What kind of question is that? Just tell me. I won’t throw a fit.” Lio had a feeling he already knew what the answer was.

“Well, then yes,” Galo said. “I feel like there’s more wrappers in the trash than before, and if I leave anything out for too long, you’ll eat it.”

Lio gave a thoughtful hum. “Noted.” Galo wasn’t wrong about that appraisal, he felt. The abandoned muffin was a good example. It had been sitting on the counter for a day or two, and he didn’t want it to go stale, so down the hatch it went. The implications of being something of a garbage disposal worried him.

“Are you okay? Is there anything else bothering you?” Galo had a habit of asking the right questions at the wrong times.

“I’ve been a bit tired and hungry recently. That’s it,” Lio said, hoping that would satisfy Galo and keep him from probing further. At this point, his okayness was very much in question, his anxiety creeping up on him slowly as he began to wonder how he had gained these strange new habits and what the repercussions were. This matter was one he would prefer to resolve on his own, however.

“I guess that makes sense,” Galo said, and Lio internally sighed in relief. “It’s gotta be the weather. The second it starts getting all cold and cloudy, everyone gets that way.”

“Makes sense,” Lio echoed. He let the conversation drop off there, idly placing his hands on top of Galo’s on his stomach. He looked down at himself, and he was quite sure he saw a bit of roundness to his belly that hadn’t been there before. It seemed that denial ran deep for a good while there, and he was just waking up to find out what had happened to him while he was enjoying himself.

After a few minutes of resting, Galo gave Lio’s tummy a pat and nudged him to move. “If you’ve got room in there still after all the chocolate, I ought to make us some dinner. How does mac and cheese sound? I’ll even throw in the ham bits for you.”

Lio scooted off Galo’s lap, watching him get up and go. “I’m in favor of that.” Galo had figured out how to make utterly divine mac and cheese, flavorful and perfectly balanced between cheese and noodles. The ham bits added an extra punch of flavor and texture, and Lio tried to keep his mouth from watering at the mere thought of such a delicious meal. When Galo served it up, he couldn’t help but go for seconds. Thirds even happened sometimes, if he was particularly hungry (or he felt he got shorted in the prior scoops).

Good food made him feel justified in being a bit gluttonous sometimes.

All the same, the creeping realization that the sensual honeymoon period had consequences lingered. His body had changed, he knew that much, but he needed to check the extent of the changes. For better or worse, he had a benchmark in mind. It would be simple enough to test tomorrow.

He would enjoy his dinner tonight, but tomorrow would be a day for some serious reflection.


	2. Ripped at the Seams

The next day was a day of reckoning, in a way.

Lio pulled his clothes from his Burnish days out from where they’d been tucked away in the closet. Granted, only the pants had survived the final battle, but he’d kept them as a trophy of sorts, almost like a historical artifact. He did have some shirts like the one he wore under the top, so that would be a good starting point. Sucking in a deep breath, he slid on a white shirt with a cravat, and once he got situated, his assessment indicated some red flags. The shirt didn’t seem to flow properly on his body, and whether he wanted to admit it or not, his stomach made a bump in the middle. Still, the shirt fit, which satisfied Lio for a brief moment even with all the worrisome signs around it.

He didn’t want to think of the worst case scenario right now.

The pants were next. When Lio tried to put the pants on, a pang of alarm surged through him when he realized that they weren’t sliding on so easily. In fact, they seemed snagged on his thighs and rear, to the point that he attempted to jump into his pants out of desperation. With some effort, he managed to get them up, but the result was nauseating. His thighs pressed up against the seams in a way that induced paranoia of them ripping, the waist didn’t sit right against his stomach, and he knew that his butt was making the pants stick out in that way that left a gap in back. To make matters worse, when he put one of the belts on his waist, it didn’t hang so loosely like it used to. He’d have to move it up one notch to get the same effect. Between the awkward fit of his shirt and the generally failed fit of his pants, it seemed that the worst case scenario was staring him in the face.

At that moment, Lio thought he was going to throw up or faint or simply die of embarrassment on the spot. His head began to spin from the inside out. All of this situation was wrong, horribly wrong. The leader of the Mad Burnish was lean and strong and poised to strike at all times. The imposter attempting to wear his clothes was soft, spoiled, and lazy. He’d done it, he’d really gone and done it this time. He had destroyed himself by allowing himself to be coddled. Gone was the tightly-wound leader who went without food and rest so his people could survive. In his place was a careless glutton who indulged without restraint, to the point that he’d gotten fat from devouring everything Galo put in front of him and sleeping his woes away. Something snapped inside his mind, and a great desperate fury came surging out of him.

Soon, he was thundering through the apartment, roaring Galo’s name.

“All right, all right, I’m coming! What’s all the stomping for?” Galo finally showed himself in front of Lio, quirking an eyebrow when he noticed one specific issue at hand. “Why are you wearing those clothes?”

Lio pointed one shaking, accusatory finger at his partner. “You’ve ruined me,” he sputtered, his voice trembling. “You’ve fattened me up to the point that my old clothes don’t fit anymore. That’s it. You’ve singlehandedly destroyed my image as the leader of the Mad Burnish. Look at this!”

“Wait, what?” Galo drew out the “what” for a good second out of sheer confusion. “Slow down and cut the theatrics for a second. Where is all this coming from?”

“I’m not in the mood to deal with you being stupid,” Lio spat, the pace of his speech quickening with every sentence. “I’ll say it again: you’ve ruined me. You’ve spoiled me to the point that I’ve gotten fat. This shouldn’t be happening. None of this should be happening.”

“I might be stupid, but you’re the one who didn’t listen,” Galo said firmly. “Slow down, start from the very beginning. Where is this coming from?”

Lio sucked in a breath, which only seemed to secure his anger instead of calming him down. “You idiot!” he shouted. “Do I have to say it in simple sentences for you? You made me fat! My old clothes don’t fit! Look at me!”

“Okay, that’s enough!” Galo reached forward to grab Lio by the shoulders, but thought better of it halfway there. “First off, I didn’t ‘make’ you fat. I’m not pointing fingers, but it’s not like I’m the one who put the heaps of treat wrappers in the trash, right?” He continued over Lio’s stammering rage. “Second off, those pants would be tight on anyone. The fact that they fit you just right was kind of worrying in hindsight. And the shirt...” He trailed off there, because he didn’t think it would be a good idea to mention anything about the shirt.

“Don’t you dare blame this on me,” Lio hissed, even as he realized that he was taking no responsibility for his own overindulgence. “How can you be so calm about this? This isn’t what either of us bargained for. I didn’t come here to be domesticated, and you didn’t come here to watch me turn into a fat, lazy slob!”

“What the hell are you talking about?” Galo shook his head, as though trying to reorient himself through Lio’s onslaught. “Let’s make one thing very clear: I will care for you regardless of how you are. Fat, thin, whatever. I just want you to be happy and comfortable in your new life.”

Galo’s habit of being relentlessly caring felt as though it pierced Lio’s heart. It didn’t make him feel better. In fact, it made his fall from grace hurt even worse. The edges of his vision blurred with angry tears. “It doesn’t matter. The point still stands. My image is ruined. I can’t be the former leader of the Mad Burnish while I’m like this. I used to be so sharp and strong, and now I’m just… soft.”

“Ah, come on, don’t cry,” Galo said, reaching forward to thumb away a runaway tear, only to have his hand swatted away. “The hell?! What was that for?”

“I don’t need your comfort,” Lio said with a sniff. “Your comfort is how I got here in the first place.”

“Cut that out!” Galo raised his voice, feeling irritation build within him. “You have to take some responsibility for what’s going on. At some point, you started going nuts on the junk food and stopped coming with me to work out. I’ll take my own responsibility and quit giving you so many treats. Deal?”

The painfully true notion that Lio was partially responsible for his own condition stung even as he tried to stuff it down. Shame warmed his face, and the tears formed a steady stream. “I kept telling myself that I was just enjoying what a life of peace had to offer me. At some point, I let everything go and became absorbed in pleasure seeking. I’m disgusted with myself.”

Galo reached forward once more and was relieved to find that he didn’t get swatted this time. He took Lio’s hands into his and gave them a squeeze. “Stop beating yourself up. It’s not going to help you. We can fix this, all right? I’ll help you cut back on the sweets and I’ll make you come with me to work out.”

Lio huffed and squeezed back, more to relieve tension than to express affection. “Fine. I still don’t think you understand the magnitude of what’s happened here, but it’s a start.”

“Maybe I don’t,” Galo said. “But I still think you’re being way too hard on yourself about this. I won’t stop caring for you because you’ve gained weight, and I don’t think any others will, either.”

“The others…” Lio hesitated, swallowing nervously as he realized something. “No. I can’t let them see me like this. It’ll destroy their image of me as their capable leader.”

“Oh, geez, here we go again!” Galo released Lio’s hands and ran his hands through his hair spikes as frustration built up inside him. “Are you really going to stay home forever because you’re afraid of what people will think? That’s ridiculous.”

“Not forever. Just until I’m presentable again.” Lio pulled away from Galo, folding his arms in a gesture that was equal parts defiant and self-protective.

“What’s that supposed to mean? Lio, you are presentable.” Galo sighed and scratched behind his head. “I really don’t think people will freak out just because you put on a few pounds.”

“You don’t understand,” Lio sputtered. “So many of my people went without food and struggled to survive. I’ve betrayed them by indulging like this. They have every right to mock me for letting myself go.”

“I don’t follow,” Galo muttered. “I don’t see how any of this is betrayal.”

“I’ll only break it down for you once.” Lio found himself unable to maintain eye contact as he explained his thought process. “It’s not fair that I get to revel in pleasure when everyone struggled and some are, in fact, still struggling. When people see me like this, they’ll wonder what happened to the leader who kept everyone together and made sacrifices for everyone’s sake. I’ll look like a fool.”

Pinching the bridge of his nose, Galo put up one more objection. “I think you’re being way too hard on yourself and expecting way too much of the worst.”

Lio shook his head, lowering it in shame. “I don’t understand how you can even stand to look at me right now. I’ve fallen so far since you took me in. I’ve gone soft in every sense.”

“What part of ‘I will care for you regardless of what shape you’re in’ did you not get? If you keep beating yourself up like this, it’s only going to get worse.” Galo folded his arms, looking his partner over. Yes, Lio was looking a little chubby, but anyone would look chubby relative to how he started out. “I keep telling you we can fix this. You just have to work towards it and quit angsting over it.”

“Even if you’re right, you have to understand how hard it will be for me to face the world like this,” Lio muttered. “The others have every right to disapprove of what has happened to me.”

“Look, why don’t we just take it one step at a time? You can’t read everyone’s minds. Maybe you’ll go out and find it’s not as bad as you’re expecting.” Galo sighed, already getting exhausted with the whole ordeal. “For starters, get out of those clothes and into something more comfortable.”

Lio found that he couldn’t keep blazing with anger when Galo was countering him with reason and kindness. How typical. He echoed Galo’s sigh and drooped. “I need some time alone. I’ll come out for dinner, but aside from that… leave me in our room.”

“No can do,” Galo said. “I’m not leaving you alone to make yourself crazy with angst. I don’t want to see you beat yourself up over this anymore.”

“Fine. You really don’t know when to quit, do you?” Lio shook his head again, fiddling with the hem of his shirt. “I’m just going to get changed.”

“Yeah, no, I’m not going to let you keep carrying on over something this silly,” Galo said as he watched Lio head back to the bedroom. “If you’re in there for too long, I’m coming in!”

“Whatever,” Lio called back before shutting the door for some privacy. He loved and hated Galo’s consistent ability to defuse him and shut down his tantrums. While he felt they kept him from treating an event as seriously as he wanted to, he couldn’t deny that Galo was right. Throwing a pity party wasn’t going to change his situation or the opinions of others, whatever they might be.

Even if he was uncomfortable in his own skin, there was no point in making himself miserable about it. All he needed to do was settle down and fix it.


	3. You Earned It

Lio sat sulking at the dining room table, one hand on his stomach. He had calmed down from the day before, but his mood hadn’t exactly improved. Making himself eat breakfast had been something of a struggle, but he made it.

“Please tell me you finally ate breakfast,” Galo said as he walked past, suddenly stopping in front of Lio. He gave his partner a quizzical stare, looked at his own shirt, then back to Lio. “Wait a second, are you wearing one of my shirts?”

Lio nodded. “I need to. My normal shirts make my gut stick out.”

“The boyfriend shirt look is cute on you, but…” Galo sighed in exasperation. “You don’t need to cover yourself up. I’d be surprised if you did go up a shirt size, for real.”

“And I’d be surprised if I didn’t,” Lio retorted. He shook his head, his face creased with frustration and anxiety. “Galo, why didn’t you tell me I was getting fat?”

The question was a good one, to be sure, and Galo already had an answer prepared. “Because I didn’t think you were,” he said. “I expected you to fluff up a bit once you settled down. Anyone would if things changed for them like they did for you. I guess I did get a bit worried towards the end, though.”

“Really,” Lio said flatly. “You got worried and you didn’t think to let me know something didn’t seem right?”

“Fine, yeah, I made a bad call in not telling you sooner,” Galo said. “But I really didn’t think it was a problem until you stopped going out like you used to. Now you just go to work, come home, eat, and sleep, and that’s your routine.”

“It got cold,” Lio muttered, wincing at his own poor excuse before changing targets. “You really are an idiot. You must have noticed the changes at some point."

"Wait, you expected me to notice, but you didn't do anything about it yourself? That's ridiculous." Galo found himself rushing his hands through his hair again. “Why didn’t you pump the brakes on your eating sprees at all? You expected me to notice what’s going on with you, and yet you didn’t seem to care about what was going on yourself.”

“I…” Lio sighed and shook his head, defeated. “I really did get carried away. After a certain point, I kept wanting to stimulate myself again and again and just kept doing what felt good because it felt good. After a while, I must have gotten addicted to it all.”

“No one can fault you for that. Stress can do that to you.” Galo reached to cup Lio’s chin and tilt his head up, waiting till he was sure there would be no resistance to do it. “Look, how about we stop fussing over how it happened and just fix it? You sitting around sulking is not how you fix this.”

Lio nodded and gently removed Galo’s hand from his chin. “You’re right, but ‘just fixing it’ won’t be easy.”

“No, it won’t,” Galo said. “But we’ll get there. I’ll give you one more week for you to get the rest of it out of your system. Next week, it’s back to working out and cutting back, alright?”

“Mm-hm.” Lio looked down at the slight arc of his belly that was still visible through the oversized t-shirt. “Still, this shouldn’t have happened to begin with. I shouldn’t have let myself become absorbed in pleasure-seeking.”

Galo sighed and scratched the back of his head. “Not this again. It’s completely okay for you to enjoy yourself here and there. You deserve to be able to relax and enjoy a life of peace.”

“Do I?” Lio asked. It was an honest question. “After all that happened, do I really deserve to be able to let myself go like this?”

“Absolutely,” Galo said with a quickness. “You saved the world with me. You absolutely deserve to be able to enjoy the world you saved. You earned it. So what if you went a bit overboard? I don’t think anyone can blame you for that.”

“Do you really think so? Even now, I still feel the weight of everyone’s expectations on me.” Lio looked at a point on the ground, scratching his stomach. “Even if there are no more Burnish, the former Burnish deserve a leader who can keep himself together.”

“No, that’s just the weight of-” Galo felt the upcoming glare before Lio even launched it and swiftly abandoned his bad joke. “I think all the pressure you’re putting on yourself is less healthy than being a little chubby. It’s going to stress you out and make things worse.”

“I’ve never been fat a day in my life until now,” Lio grumbled. “It’s unsettling for me.”

“Just when I think you’re done carrying on, you start up again. We’ve got to break this cycle,” Galo remarked. “I just want you to enjoy life. You can’t do that if you’re weighing yourself down with angst.” He hit upon something, even though he had a feeling it was going to earn him a bad reaction that he probably deserved. “I’d argue that the angst weighs more than you do, and carrying it around is just going to make you feel fatter.”

The reaction he ended up getting was surprising. “The metaphor is ridiculous, but you’re not wrong,” Lio said with a huff. “It’s not easy to just shrug it off, however. You have to understand that.”

Galo nodded. “I do. That’s why I gave you some time to get everything out of your system. We’ll get you happy and healthy again, I swear.” He paused, then added, “But it’s not like you’re really unhealthy right now, you know? I think a little extra is fine.”

“You think it’s fine, but you’re not the one dealing with it,” Lio remarked. “I feel like people would be less surprised to see you gain weight than me, considering how you shove pizza in your face.”

It was Galo’s turn to get indignant. “Hey, hey! For the record, I’m active enough that I burn it all off!” In one fluid and obviously very practiced motion, he whipped his shirt off and threw it into a corner of the room. “See? I’ve still got my abs!”

Lio gave a small smile and tried with all his might not to laugh. “Maybe it all goes to your pecs then,” he mused.

“Oh, whatever, you like ‘em,” Galo muttered, waving Lio off. “Just like I like your legs and your tummy.”

“Please,” Lio muttered, rolling his eyes. “Quit trying to make me like my problem areas.”

“Please,” Galo echoed. “You being comfortable in your own skin would be the best thing.”

“It probably won’t happen for a while,” Lio said. “But we’ll work on it, I suppose.”

“Yes, we will,” Galo said. “I can tell you’re feeling better already. I think you nearly laughed back there.”

“Maybe.” Lio put his hand over his mouth to hide a tight little smile trying to escape. “Curse you and your ability to cool me down like this.”

“Oh, yeah, I’m definitely going to hell for that,” Galo said with a chuckle. He leaned forward and wrapped his arms around Lio, giving him a squeeze and a kiss on the forehead. “It’s too bad. You’re fun to squeeze.”

“You’re going to make me like myself, whether I want to or not, aren’t you?” Lio said, cozying up to Galo’s chest in the hold. “You’re the worst, but also the best.”

“I’m not just the best, I’m number one!” Galo laughed and gave Lio another squeeze. “C’mon, I’ll go look for something for us to do today, unless you really want to stay in.”

Lio pursed his lips, looking up at Galo with a twinge of concern. “Only if I can borrow one of your jackets on the way out.”

Galo sighed and released Lio, giving him a parting pat on the head. “All right, fine. We’ll take a walk around town. It’ll be a good start. When the week is up, we can go for runs together!”

“Deal. I’m curious to see how some of the reconstruction projects are going,” Lio said.

“Okay, then go get ready! It’s not so cold out today, so I think you’ll be fine.” Galo took a few steps away, but he didn’t turn away from Lio, as though making sure he wouldn’t become unstable the second he turned his back.

“Fine, I’m going.” Lio stood up, and for a moment he was aware of his shirt moving against his stomach, and the discomfort and anxiety returned. Galo’s shirt and jacket would most likely hide the worst of it, but if anyone with particularly sharp eyes saw him, he might be in trouble. He hoped that he could trust the people of Promepolis to be more polite than to grill him on why he was wearing a big jacket.

This day would be the first time he actively went out of his own volition in a long time. It was indeed a start, but where it would lead remained to be seen.


	4. The Hinge

Lio didn’t care that he’d been given a week to get the last of his impulses out of his system.

The more he caught sight of his body and the distortions accompanying it, the more stressed he became. Objectively, he knew better than to expect results in any short amount of time, but all the same he wished he could just snap the extra weight away and not have to worry about being judged. It wasn’t uncomfortable, and if he went about his business for long enough he could almost forget the shape he was in, but something would always remind him.

The extra pull his shirts had. The leftover pizza in the fridge. The foil balls and wrappers in the trash.

Galo had done his part on their walk the other day. They’d passed a few eateries as they went around town, and he hadn’t done anything in particular to highlight them, leaving it up to Lio to express whether he’d wanted anything or not. Lio fought hard to not let temptation win over, which left him rather hungry when they got home for dinner. Galo had given him a small lecture about not eating lunch, but since the issue was remedied not much later, the impact was muffled.

Still, the fight against temptation was very much a fight. Lio found himself longing for the cakes in the bakery window, and whenever there was anything vaguely resembling a delicious smell, he wanted to follow the scent to its source and enjoy the corresponding flavor. Someone down the hall in the apartment complex was making something that smelled meaty and spicy, and he put all his efforts into stuffing the urge to sniff the hallway down.

Every deficit of food seemed to register as hunger in his mind. He thought he could feel the urge to indulge and the need for restraint pressing up against each other, and the result was incredibly stressful.

Everything hit a flash point when Galo brought home a mostly-full box of leftover doughnuts from work.

Lio had the next day off, leaving him alone in the apartment with the offending box of doughnuts. He passed it whenever he walked through the kitchen, which became a more frequent occurrence throughout the day as he turned over the idea of whether to try at least one. The majority of the doughnuts were the kind with frosting and sprinkles, but one chocolate-topped custard doughnut was calling to him. The light flavor of the custard would offset the dark flavor of the chocolate perfectly, and the dough still felt soft even a day later.

Somehow, the damn thing ended up in his mouth.

He stood over the box in the kitchen, taking voracious bites out of the pastry, relishing the smoothness of the cream and frosting. He knew he was getting it all over his face, but that would just be fun to lick off at the end. Maybe he could leave some on his face by “accident,” and Galo could kiss it off before they sank into a romantic interlude.

The thought of Galo sent a record scratch through his mind as he jammed the last bite of doughnut into his mouth.

He was doing the opposite of what he was supposed to be doing. He had crashed directly into his urges, devouring a treat that he didn’t need just because every part of him begged for it. On top of that, he’d nearly had fun with it all as he imagined Galo’s lips brushing against his, taking off the leftover frosting and cream and lowering him as they prepared for a good night.

That was _it_.

Spite and indignation surged through Lio’s mind in that moment. Galo cared for him. He’d vowed to care for him regardless of what shape he was in. Why, then, would it matter if he held back or not? He’d already gotten fat, and he was at the point where he was reduced to mindlessly satisfying cravings. He had already ruined himself, so would it really matter if he just kept going?

He wanted Galo to come home and spoil him, to love him, to keep loving him even if he got big as a house. The desire for pleasure had won out, and it seemed that a sensory orgy of sorts was in order.

Galo would walk in on Lio sitting on the couch, hunched over the box of doughnuts, rapaciously stuffing his face with reckless abandon. The scene left Galo speechless, a rare happening.

It took Lio a solid minute to realize Galo had even walked in over the spiteful noise in his mind. “Galo,” he murmured after swallowing. “Come here. I want you to spoil me tonight.”

“Uh.” Galo’s eye contact went from the spreading wreckage in the doughnut box to Lio’s frosting-smeared face. “Is this supposed to be sexy? I’m not getting it.”

“I want you to love me, even while I’m like this,” Lio said, skating over the question. “You said you would.”

“Yeah, but…” Galo paused, still flummoxed by the carnage in front of him. “Are you… you’re not okay, are you? What the hell is going on?”

“I figured it out. I don’t have to care about getting fat. I’m already spoiled rotten, so what does it matter if I just keep going? It’s too late for me. I’m going to be mocked no matter what, so I might as well give them something real to point and laugh at.” The monologue flowed out of Lio’s mouth just a bit too quickly, betraying the anxiety and pain under the false enlightenment. He picked up a strawberry frosting doughnut with sprinkles and took a disproportionately huge bite. “So, love me,” he said with his mouth full.

“This is bad,” Galo muttered under his breath as he tried to slap together a plan of action for defusing the situation. “Lio, this is too much. Before I do anything with you, I need you to calm down and clear your head. I don’t know what started this, but-” Never mind, he did know what probably kicked this incident off. “Okay, I shouldn’t have brought the doughnuts home. It was a bad call and I’m sorry. Just put the doughnut down for a moment? Please?”

Lio looked from the doughnut to the box, his eyes going wide as the extent of his binge sank in, however slowly. “Can I just finish this one? Or maybe we can share it.” The sharing sounded like a good idea, as the pull of fullness in his belly was finally tangible now that he’d slowed down some.

Galo sighed heavily, cautiously sitting down next to Lio on the couch. “Okay, we can share it.” He extended his hand, hoping that Lio would split the doughnut and give it to him. Instead, Lio put it in his mouth and leaned closer, clearly wanting Galo to bite the other half for an indirect kiss. “I can’t do this right now,” Galo said, massaging his temples. “This is not the fun kind of horny you’re showing me. This is desperate.”

The rejection stung, even if Lio knew his partner was right. He pulled the doughnut out of his mouth and chewed slowly, trying to distract himself from the tears blurring the edge of his vision. Slowly, he set it back down in the box, stared at it for one moment, and then exploded into hysterical sobbing. “Why? Why can’t I stop? It’s horrible. I never had this problem before. It never used to be like this.”

“Lio,” Galo whispered softly, stunned from the outburst. He reached forward to hold Lio, but Lio didn’t accept the attempted embrace. Dropping his arms, he shook his head and continued. “You’re putting way too much pressure on yourself. There’s a reason I gave you a week to get it all out of your system. You didn’t have to start cutting back now, and you didn’t have to go cold turkey.”

“Maybe you’re right, but the urges are still there,” Lio whined through the stream of tears. “I still want to eat and sleep all the time. I can’t get it to stop. I’m trying to stop being a slave to pleasure, but it keeps getting worse.”

“What you need to stop is putting monumental amounts of pressure on yourself and unreasonable expectations,” Galo said, a mild edge to his voice. “Think about it this way. This extreme you’re going through right now was never a thing. You just feel like it is because of what you’re doing to yourself. You were just enjoying living a normal life and being cared for, and there’s nothing wrong with that.”

“Maybe you’re right,” Lio repeated, trying to wipe away his tears as they came out. “But what about the fact that it got this bad, even if it wasn’t before?”

“It’s because you kept putting pressure on yourself,” Galo said once more, irritation bristling on the edges of his tone. “You exploded. Listen, you’re allowed to enjoy love and life like anyone else is. You’re a normal person. It doesn’t matter if you were or are the leader of the Burnish. You have every right to live happily, and I won’t let you tell yourself otherwise.”

“Why…?” Lio scrubbed at his face and shook his head. “How can you always pour out so much love? I don’t know how you do it. It gets me every time.”

“Look, just because my soul runs hot doesn’t mean I can’t keep it perfectly warm for you,” Galo said, relaxing as he felt Lio did. “I just want you to be happy. Is that so hard for you to get?”

Lio shook his head once more. “I’m disgusted with myself… but I’m also so tired of fighting myself,” he said, drooping. “I just want to enjoy your love. I don’t care if anyone mocks me anymore. I want to truly take in all that warmth and care you give me.”

“Then let all this go,” Galo said. “Stop beating yourself up. Relax. Let yourself be happy like you want to.”

“Okay… fine.” Lio sighed heavily and slumped onto his side on the couch. “I’m exhausted.” He rolled onto his back and stared up at Galo with dimmed eyes.

“It’s going to be alright,” Galo crooned, looking at his partner with a warm gaze. “I’m glad you came around. I just wish that you didn’t beat yourself up until you got there. Anyone would find that exhausting.” A mischievous little smirk spread across his face, and he crept upward along Lio’s body.

“Where are you going?” Lio had no idea what to expect, and he got his answer when Galo lifted up his shirt and planted a soft kiss on his belly. The sensation sent a shiver through him, one that he wasn’t sure about whether it was from shock, embarrassment, or pleasure. “Wh-why…?”

Galo repeated the kiss, carefully measuring himself so that the kiss was nothing less than perfectly sweet and tender. “Because you need to learn to love you like I love you,” he answered, cautiously continuing to slide Lio’s shirt up and watching for any signs of objection. None occurred. “Listen. You saved the world with me. I started a fire for you. It doesn’t matter what shape you’re in. Fat, thin, square, round, dodeca-whatever. I’m going to care for you till the very end.” He rested a hand in the middle of Lio’s chest, over his heart. “Your burning heart was what pulled me in from the very beginning. Deep down, your soul blazes almost as hot as mine does. If you can burn through that cloud of shame you’ve put on yourself, you’ll be radiant again, no matter how you look.”

“You keep saying that,” Lio said, a faint smile playing at his lips. “I suppose I should start listening. You haven’t abandoned me yet.”

“There’s no ‘yet’ about it. I’m not leaving you behind, ever,” Galo said, gently stroking along Lio’s chest. “I don’t know how else to get it into your head. I love you, you idiot.”

Lio gave a short, sharp chuckle despite himself. “Who are you calling an idiot? You’re the one who loves me.” He gave a soft hum, slowly relaxing. “I love you, too. I can’t feel anything else for you, especially after you’ve poured so much affection into me after I’ve been so difficult.”

“It’s okay,” Galo said, his hand snaking lower along Lio’s stomach. “Now that you’re finally calming down, you can enjoy all I have to give you.” He leaned down and planted one more kiss on Lio’s tummy, soft and sweet and intended to display as much love as possible. “Love yourself.”

“I’ll learn to love myself one day,” Lio murmured, looking down at the hand on his stomach. “But until then, I’d rather love you more.”

“Do whatever makes you happy.” Galo stroked along the hill of Lio’s belly and said something that he hoped wouldn’t set him off again. “Man, you really went nuts on those doughnuts. Your poor belly’s all hard.”

Lio took it mildly, not having the energy to take any more offense. “I won’t deny that. I’ve probably set myself up for a major case of indigestion.” The tiniest hint of a smile crept to his face. “Do I still have frosting on my face?”

Galo looked up, studying Lio’s face and feeling a pang at seeing how red and puffy he’d made himself even as he confirmed the presence of frosting. “Yeah, a little. What about it?”

“Would you take care of that for me?” Lio asked. “Preferably with a kiss?”

Galo laughed despite himself. “All right, all right, you little horn dog. Because you finally calmed down, I’ll kiss you on the lips and anywhere else you’d like.”

“Well then,” Lio said, spreading himself out slightly on the couch. “Take your pick.”

As the two sank into a romantic episode, Lio smiled as he thought about how his fantasy was coming true anyway. He’d wanted Galo to kiss the frosting off, and there he was, doing just that and working his way down. If he could live off Galo’s love alone, he would. No amount of sugar could make him feel better than this.


	5. A Break From Pizza

Another two days passed. Given the severity of Lio’s outburst from before, Galo had offered to reset the week timer on putting the lifestyle changes into effect, and Lio had accepted that. As a last hurrah of sorts, Galo had brought Lio to a burger joint that was gaining popularity in post-Promare Promepolis, and the duo now sat at a booth table in the restaurant, browsing the menus.

“I appreciate going out for something other than pizza, but…” Lio tilted his head as he studied his menu. “These burgers are going to sit in my stomach like a rock.”

Galo grinned and shrugged, setting his menu down. “Just don’t get a huge one and you’ll be okay. I mean, you might get called a weenie for not appreciating the meat, but who cares?”

Lio rolled his eyes. “Please. If they call me a weenie for not stuffing myself, I don’t know what to tell them.”

A waitress came by to take their orders. Galo got some kind of egg and bacon and burger monstrosity, while Lio settled for a simple cheeseburger. As the waitress left, Lio couldn’t help but stare at her for a moment as an unsettled feeling washed over him.

“What’cha looking at?” Galo asked, cheeky as ever until Lio spoke next.

“The waitress… I think she was a Burnish,” Lio muttered, one hand flexing into a lightly clenched fist as he looked around the restaurant.

“Oh? Well, shouldn’t you be happy that a former Burnish is working out in the open and seems to be doing fine?” Galo asked, but from the way Lio was looking around, he could tell that his mind was headed elsewhere.

Lio let out a soft, short gasp. “This place… I’m recognizing a lot of faces. It’s crawling with former Burnish.” He looked from side to side, his anxiety crumpling his expression. “I… I can’t believe it. What if one of them recognizes me? How do I explain myself?”

Before Galo could pacify Lio, two familiar voices cut through the air.

“Hey, Boss! Is that you?”

“Gueira, wait-”

Gueira came charging up to Galo and Lio’s table, grinning like a fool. Meis was close behind in a way that indicated that he wasn’t completely intending to stop him. “Man, it feels like it’s been forever since we last saw you! You look great, man!”

Meis peered at Lio a bit more closely, even as the Burnish boss swallowed nervously. “You look like you’re doing well,” Meis agreed.

“I…” Lio looked from Gueira to Meis to Galo and back, unsure of how to take the compliment. “Do you really think so?”

“Yeah!” Gueira put his hands on his hips and gave a boisterous laugh. “You’ve got good color to your face, and you’re actually sitting down to enjoy a real meal. It’s good to see!”

Gueira’s perpetually high volume was beginning to attract attention, and Lio saw that people at other tables were recognizing him. A few shouts of “Boss!” rang out through the restaurant. Lio could feel his stomach sink, and there wasn’t even a burger in it yet.

Galo’s reaction was both helpful and unhelpful. “Why don’t you go say hi to them, Lio? It might be nice to check in with everyone and see how they’re doing now.”

“I guess, but…” Lio swallowed nervously once more. He didn’t have a jacket covering his stomach and he’d (perhaps unwisely) opted not to wear one of Galo’s shirts today. How Gueira and Meis could say he looked good and was doing well (without a hint of sarcasm) confused him. He could feel his heart flutter anxiously in his chest, and it seemed that he was going to have to face his fear of what his people would think of him right here and now. “Gueira, Meis, can I talk to you in private for a moment?”

Gueira looked to Meis, who was the one to respond. “Sure, we can step out.”

Lio looked to Galo, who nodded for him to go ahead. Lio sighed heavily. “I’ll be back soon, probably. Maybe the food will be here when I’m done.” He slid out of the booth and began walking towards the exit, with Gueira and Meis in tow.

Once they were outside, Lio put his efforts towards not looking down in shame. “Do you two notice anything different about me?”

Meis cupped his chin as he studied his former leader, while Gueira leaned forward in exaggerated scrutiny. “No? What am I even supposed to be looking for? Did you cut your hair or something?” Gueira said at last, the questioning inflection approaching a point of parody as he went on.

Lio shook his head and pursed his lips, looking to make sure no one was coming up the street before he took a drastic measure. “Maybe this will open your eyes,” he murmured before reaching down and pulling his shirt off in broad daylight.

Meis blinked, startled, while Gueira made a fuss as he was wont to do. “Whoa, Boss! No shirt, no shoes, no service! Don’t tell me hanging out with Galo has made you forget that.”

“If it’s that bad, I’ll put it back on,” Lio grumbled, fairly certain that he felt a chill in the air.

“That’s not what he meant and you know it,” Meis said, his tone firm but neutral. “How is this supposed to help us figure out what you want to show us?”

Lio’s eyes widened with incredulity at how dense his former generals were being. “Fine, I’ll spell it out for you. I have a confession to make.” He swallowed nervously and willed his would-be confession to come out before he changed his mind, clutching his shirt close to his chest as he did. “I’ve… I’ve gotten fat and sloppy in peacetime. I’ve let myself get spoiled with food and sleep. I’m sorry for breaking your expectations of me.”

An objection shot out of Meis’s mouth. “That’s it? That’s really what you’ve been so concerned about?”

“That’s all? Really?” Gueira echoed before going on. “Come on! Don’t be silly. This happened to everyone after everything settled down. We’ve all chunked up a bit now that we don’t have to live on the run. Lighten up on yourself!”

“He’s right,” Meis said. “I can assure you you’re not the only one struggling with getting used to a peaceful life. You, however, especially deserve to enjoy your new life. We’ve seen how much pressure you put on yourself to take care of others, especially when sacrifices needed to be made. You don’t need to do that anymore.”

“He’s right!” Gueira echoed Meis once more. “So what if you put on a little extra? You’re still you. We still care about you, and I bet every former Burnish in that burger joint cares about you too. You’re every bit as capable as you were before, and if anyone gives you trouble, we’ll snuff ‘em faster than you can say ‘light ‘em up!’”

Lio stared at his former generals, almost in disbelief of what he was hearing. Here he was, expecting to be torn apart by the people he thought he’d betrayed by indulging himself, and they were pouring acceptance at him. The doubts hung on for one last moment. “But… don’t you see it? How can you stand to look at me while I’m like this?”

“So what?” Gueira said, shooting Lio a skeptical look. “You sound like you’re trying to bait us into calling you fat and letting you get away with hating yourself. Again, so what? Here, lemme show you…” He flung off his jacket and began pulling his shirt off. “Take a good look! What’s different about me, huh?”

Meis, ever the wild card, tugged off his tank top with one fluid motion even as Lio didn’t expect him to join in. “Yeah, Boss, what’s different about either of us? Why don’t you take a look?”

Once again, Lio stared at Gueira and Meis, flabbergasted at how far they were willing to go to prove a point. Then again, he wasn’t sure he expected them not to go all the way with what they did. Sure enough, both of them looked less gaunt than they did in their Burnish days. In his opinion, they looked healthier, a little more normal this way. “I… I don’t think anything is different about either of you,” he said at last. “You both look healthier, now that I think about it, but that’s all.”

“There you go! You don’t think it matters for us, so why do you think it should matter for you? You look just fine, I think. It’s better than seeing you skinny as a rail and then having to fuss over whether you actually ate or not that day.” Gueira nodded sagely, scooping up his jacket as he did.

“If you’re really that concerned about it, you know there’s steps you can take, but I think you look better this way.” Meis mimicked Gueira’s nod. “You don’t have to fight yourself any longer. It’s safe to enjoy peace, however you choose to do it. If you want to do it by keeping yourself comfortable, we’re not going to stop you or mock you for it.”

“Is that so?” The outpouring of positivity was starting to sink in for Lio, bit by bit. He began to believe that his people truly wanted him to be happy, regardless of his indulgences. Gueira and Meis, the ones most likely to call him out if something was wrong, were presenting him with wholehearted acceptance and even showing themselves to him in solidarity. They had no qualms about their conditions, and it made him wonder why he was throwing such a fit about his. In general, the unexpected acceptance was melting him from the inside, stirring soft emotions that he wasn’t expecting. “I… Thank you,” he said after a lengthy hesitation, feeling his face warm with a mix of embarrassment and flattery. “Thank you both, so very much. I needed to hear this from you.”

“Hey, we’ll do what it takes to support you. We just want you to be happy, alright?” Gueira said, grinning. “Now, let’s put our shirts on so we can eat some burgers!”

“That sounds like a good idea,” Meis said. “I was starting to get a little hangry back there.”

“Meis gets hangry?” Lio asked, the question flying out of his mouth before he could stop it.

“Oh, you have no idea! It’s kind of funny sometimes, at least until he starts pretending to eat my arm.” Gueira chuckled to himself as he pulled his shirt and jacket back on. “I can feel his teeth through my jacket, even!”

“You’ll be feeling more than just my teeth if you keep that up,” Meis said, a wry smile on his face.

“Hoo-ee, I can’t wait!” Gueira’s sarcastic enthusiasm was punctuated by a cackle. “Seriously, let’s go in and stuff our faces before he starts trying to eat me in public.”

“Come again?” Lio couldn’t help but smile at his former generals’ antics. They warmed his heart in a way only they could. He began putting his shirt back on, which took a bit due to his divided focus.

“I bet Galo’s thinking about eating your burger,” Meis teased. “You ought to go back in.”

“Fine.” Looking over his shoulder once more, he cautiously reached out and pulled the duo in for a hug. “I really can’t thank you enough.”

“No problem at all!” Gueira chuckled as he ruffled Lio’s hair. “We’ll be here for you wherever you go.”

With a slight spring in his step, Lio entered the restaurant, with Gueira and Meis close behind. The trio went their separate ways to their tables, and when Lio sat across from Galo, the feeling at the table was decidedly different. “So? How did it go?” Galo asked after swallowing a mouthful of his ridiculous egg bomb burger.

“I feel better,” Lio announced. “They told me that they wanted me to be happy and comfortable, and that many others are experiencing the same thing that I am. They didn’t judge me at all.”

“See? It wasn’t so bad! Now, if only you listened when I tried to tell you these things…” Galo knew the sharp look he got was coming. “I’m just glad you got to hear this from the people you needed to hear it from. Do you feel less like you’re betraying your people now?”

“Yes. After seeing how accepting Gueira and Meis were, I feel like a load has been lifted from me. I almost feel happy, maybe even optimistic.” Lio spared his burger and fries a glance. “Did you know that Meis gets hangry? It’s hard to imagine on someone like him, but apparently it happens.”

Galo simply laughed at the image. “That’s too funny. You’re not exactly a patient eater yourself, you know? Neither am I. I thought I was gonna explode waiting for the food and you to get back here.”

“We all know you’re impatient,” Lio said with a soft chuckle. “I’m here now, so we can eat together and enjoy a treat before we straighten up.”

“We?” A thought went through Galo’s head that Lio couldn’t immediately parse. “Yeah, we can both straighten up. I told you I’d do my part to help you out of your rut, right?”

“Mm-hm.” Lio finally picked up his burger, and he was relieved to feel that it was still warm. “For now, let’s eat and enjoy ourselves.”

“Sounds like a plan!” Galo flashed Lio a huge grin before taking an obnoxious bite out of his burger, making a big show of it in the process.

Lio had been nervous about eating in public, even with Galo around to safeguard him, but now the anxiety had dissipated. He dug into his burger with a similar fervor, enjoying the savory flavor of the meat and cheese and slowly putting together a plan for when the two got home.


	6. Can't Contain Himself

Lio found he was struggling to contain a buoyant feeling as he followed Galo home. He felt as though he was floating, the spring in his step feeling literal. As hard as he tried to keep himself together, he couldn’t hold his feelings in any longer by the time they set foot back in the apartment.

“Galo?” Lio turned around and put his hands behind his back, as though he were hiding a present behind him. “Would you do me a favor tonight?”

“Yeah? What’s up?” Galo noticed that Lio seemed a bit lighter in his stance and steps, and he wondered where his partner was headed with the favor.

A sly smile crept across Lio’s face as he leaned forward, a coy invitation. “I want you to love me. I’m still riding the high from Gueira and Meis’s acceptance, and even if it’s greedy of me, I want more. Would you satisfy me?”

Galo chuckled. “Man, I had a funny feeling you were having trouble waiting till we got home for this.” Carefully, he strode up to Lio, wrapping his arms around him and unwrapping Lio’s hands. “If you’re happy, I’m happy, and I’m more than happy to give you a little lovin’ if you want it.”

“Glad to hear it,” Lio replied as he put his arms around Galo’s shoulders. “Floor, couch, or bed?”

“Floor?! You really are in the mood,” Galo said, his surprise exaggerated. “I say couch. It’s a decent middle ground.”

“I concur,” Lio said, jumping up and wrapping his legs around Galo and nearly knocking him over. “Take me there, my noble steed.”

“Whoa, whoa, hey, tell me before you decide to attach to me like that!” Galo sputtered as he regained his balance. “Okay, okay, off we go!”

After some stumbling around, Galo deposited Lio onto his back on the couch. Lio smiled softly, contentedly, as he spread himself out. “Do what you will with me. Just fill me with your love. I want to feel it as much as I can.”

“You don’t have to tell me twice,” Galo said, carefully lowering himself over Lio and getting in position to rub his head. He entwined his fingers in his partner’s hair, gently kneading for a good head massage. “How’s this? I know you like head rubs.”

Lio hummed softly, enjoying the soft pressure. “This is nice, but I’d like something a bit more,” he purred, raising himself to kiss Galo on the lips. When they parted, he quipped, “Even when you haven’t eaten pizza, you still taste saucy.”

“You’re the saucy one,” Galo retorted, pulling back to move downward.

“Where do you think you’re going?” Lio asked, looking bemused.

Galo’s hand crept under Lio’s shirt, stroking softly along his belly before pulling his shirt up. He felt Lio twitch in response. “If this isn’t good, just say so,” he said, waiting for a response before he proceeded.

“No, it’s fine,” Lio said without hesitation. “I guess I’m just not used to things like that yet.” The look he gave Galo seemed almost pleading. “Please, keep going. Love me, and help me to love myself.”

“Absolutely.” Galo lowered himself to plant a soft, tender kiss on Lio’s stomach, nuzzling him and stroking him the whole way. “Your tummy is so soft and smooth,” he crooned. “It feels nice.”

Once again, Lio hummed, tilting his head back from the sensual surge. “I like it when you touch me. You’re so warm… it’s impossible for me to hate my body when you’re the one handling it.”

“That’s good, because I like your body,” Galo replied. “I like your tummy, your legs, your arms, your face… everything. I could hold you for days and not get bored.”

“I don’t know about days, but I’d be fine with an hour or so.” Lio reached up to teasingly pull at one of Galo’s hair spikes. “Or more if we’re sleeping together.”

Galo chuckled despite himself, even as Lio messed with his hair. “I’ll cuddle you more when we sleep then.”

“I think I’d like that,” Lio said, reaching to tease a different hair spike this time. “As long as I can feel your love whenever I’d like it.”

“When you want it, I’ll be there to give it to you.” Galo pulled away to keep Lio from messing with his hair, planting a big, loud raspberry right in the middle of his belly.

“What’s that for?!” Lio’s indignation was largely an act, one betrayed by the smile that he couldn’t hide.

“You kept pulling my hair, so I figured turnabout is fair play.” Laughing, Galo pulled Lio into another kiss to keep him from retorting. “It always feels so good to kiss you,” he cooed as they parted.

“It always feels good when you kiss me,” Lio replied. “Won’t you give me more?”

“Always.” Galo began to plant a line of kisses along Lio’s body, going from his lips to his neck to his stomach, listening carefully for the soft noises he made. When Galo reached the end of his trail, he looked up at Lio expectantly. “Do you want to…?”

“If you’re willing, then so am I.” Lio looked up at Galo to see what he would do next.

“Here we go. I’m gonna pour so much love into you that you’re gonna explode,” Galo said, hooking a finger into Lio’s waistband.

As the two slipped into their romantic interlude, Lio let himself soak in every bit of pleasure. The people around him wanted to be happy, and after that finally sank in, he wanted himself to be happy as well. Even if he wanted to have hesitations about Galo’s hands along his sides, he found he couldn’t. Everything felt so wonderfully good that he didn’t want to say no to any of it. This feeling had to be how it felt to be comfortable in one’s skin.

****

* * *

After their session, the two disentangled, with Lio relaxing against Galo’s chest. The room was silent with the exception of their breathing for a good five minutes. After that, Galo dispelled the quiet. “Hey, Lio?”

“Hmm?” Lio made a sound to show that Galo had his attention, mostly because he didn’t feel like putting forth the effort to make words.

“I wanted to say sorry to you,” Galo said, adjusting himself to look Lio as much in the eyes as he could in his position. “I’m sorry for making dumb decisions that put extra pressure on you, and I’m sorry for kind of waving off what was worrying you. I think our answer is going to have to be about more than just cutting back on the sweets.”

“Why are you apologizing to me?” Lio asked, tilting his head up in an attempt to meet Galo’s gaze. “I owe you an apology as well. I kept being stubborn and refusing to listen to you because I was so convinced that I was right. I see now that I wasn’t, and it’d be wrong of me to not acknowledge that you were right all along.” He paused as the last part of Galo’s statements reached him, puzzled. “What do you mean by the answer being more than just cutting back?”

“Well, I think you should do something that gives you confidence in yourself again and helps you cope with how things have changed,” Galo replied, scratching his chin. “Something that refreshes your view on things and gives you a new perspective.”

Lio gave a thoughtful hum as he mulled over Galo’s proposition. “That’s a good idea. Understanding what’s going on with me and the world takes action, not waiting. I think…” He paused to formulate his idea so that it made sense when he said it. “I ought to talk to the other former Burnish and see how life has changed for everyone. Gueira and Meis were a good starting point, but I need more perspectives on the issue.”

“Huh, yeah, that’s a good idea! But…” Galo grinned sheepishly and scratched the back of his head. “Yeah, my idea can’t beat that. It wasn’t anything like that.”

“What was your idea? You’re making a weird face, so you might as well spit it out,” Lio muttered, his expression sharp yet quizzical.

“I was gonna suggest you do a cheesy pinup photo shoot with me to get your body image in line,” Galo said. “Just you and me and a cell phone camera.”

“What?” Lio screwed up his face as he tried to take in the off the wall suggestion. “Why would I want to do that? The last thing I want to do is look at pictures of myself right now.” Still, he wasn’t going to say he wasn’t intrigued by the idea, even as Galo started looking like a kicked puppy at being shut down. “It does sound like fun, though. Just keep the pictures to yourself afterwards.”

Galo laughed, reaching over to ruffle Lio’s hair. “That’s my Lio! For all the crap you give me, you don’t turn down a good time.”

“You’re not wrong,” Lio murmured, leaning into Galo’s hand. “The inside of your head must be quite a place. I don’t know how you come up with half the things you do.”

“I pull them out from the depths of my burning soul,” Galo said with a chuckle. “I don’t blame you for always thinking so practically. I think it’s a good balance.”

“You have a way of reaching the right solution in creative ways,” Lio said with a little shrug. “It’s refreshing.”

“Glad to hear it.” Galo gently stroked through Lio’s hair, keeping the contact soft and sweet. “This is how it should be, you know? We get into fights, we go over them after we cool down, then we apologize and move on. What’s the point of being able to learn if you don’t, right?”

“I’d like to say I’m surprised to hear that from someone as bullheaded as you, but you’ve always demonstrated a willingness to understand when it comes to people.” Lio sighed and hummed, enjoying the contact. “I’ve always liked that about you.”

“Glad to hear it.” Galo gave Lio’s hair one last tousle before withdrawing. “I’m gonna look up some cute poses for you. You can go set up your meeting with your people, but I’m gonna do everything I can to make sure we have fun at our private photo shoot.”

“Sounds like a plan,” Lio said. “Surprise me.”

As the two parted to set up their separate arrangements, Lio felt a flutter of excitement in his chest about both events. Gueira and Meis had given him the inspiration he needed to seek the truth, and from what he remembered about the other Burnish’s reactions to him in the burger joint, they would most likely be willing to share their stories with him. The pinup photo shoot would just be a good time, a good way to blow off some steam, but that didn’t make it any less important. He understood the point of the gesture, though he understood it mostly as Galo pouring more love at him and trying to get him to love himself in turn.

He knew he needed it, and like Galo said, he wouldn’t turn down a good time.


	7. The Lives of Others

Lio sat on the bench at the coffee shop, with Meis to his right and Gueira to his left, and watched the other Burnish that had been invited to the meeting filter in. He stared at his iced coffee and gave it an awkward little sip. The temptation to go order a muffin or some other pastry had been strong, and even now, he still tried to catch glimpses of the sweets display.

Meis gave him a nudge. “You keep looking at the muffins,” he said.

“No I don’t,” Lio muttered, rolling his eyes. “The coffee’s more than enough.”

Gueira’s voice cut in from the other side. “Boss, if you’re hungry, go get yourself a muffin.” When Lio hesitated, Gueira gave him a firmer nudge, a mischievous grin on his face. “Boss, go get yourself a damn muffin! Besides, if you don’t soak up the coffee with something you’ll probably get totally hepped up on hyper goofballs and you’ll never be able to sit still again.”

“I… what?” Lio tilted his head at Gueira’s turn of phrase before objecting. “Huh. Maybe then I’ll be able to keep up with Galo for once.”

“Boss, go get yourself a damn muffin,” Meis echoed, scooting out so Lio could get the muffin.

Lio sighed heavily and left to go get his damn muffin, looking over his shoulder at the other Burnish. Some of them were waving at him already, and they all seemed happy to see him and each other. He realized that, for some of them, this was a welcome excuse for a reunion. He wondered how far some of them had spread once they were able to live in peace again. 

When he returned with a big banana nut muffin, he sat down and surveyed the row of former Burnish in front of him. He recognized most of them, he was sure. Lio looked to Meis and asked, “Is everyone here?” Though Gueira was the one who talked to the most people, Meis held most of the connections formally, and also held the guest list.

Meis nodded. “I believe so. Shall we start?”

When Lio made an affirmative noise, Gueira called out to the group. “Hey, everybody, time to sit down and listen to the boss! He’s got some important questions for you all!”

That was all it took to settle down the group. Lio wasn’t sure if he was surprised or not. All the same, he took a deep breath and tried to keep his composure as he gave his opening speech. “Everyone, thank you for coming today. I want to hear how you’re all holding up after all that happened. Are you adjusting well to peacetime? How has your life changed now that you’re no longer on the run? Things like that.” A brief but awkward silence passed as the other Burnish looked to each other, wordlessly determining who would speak first. “If you’d like, you can raise your hands and I can call on you.”

A man who Lio guessed to be in his 30’s raised his hand first. “Things have changed a lot, obviously,” he said. “It’s weird to have to go back to the little things after being away for them for three years. Suddenly, I have to actually choose what’s for dinner instead of going for the first thing I scrounged up. All the options blow my mind, to the point that it’s like, ‘what do I do now?’”

A younger woman raised her hand next, though she didn’t wait to be called on. “I agree. Weird is the best way to put it. We went from being the demons of Promepolis to just being normal people. Everyone’s been surprisingly nice to us. I think it says a lot about the people of this city that we’ve been able to settle back in so smoothly.”

“Is that so?” Lio said, even as he didn’t want to doubt what was being said. “I’m glad to hear that.”

Gueira cracked a grin as he hit upon something. “Now I’ve got a question for you guys. How did it feel to eat real meals and sleep with a roof over your head again? And then to wake up the next day and know you could do that again?” Lio issued a cut-off objection, but Meis put a hand on his shoulder to calm him and tell him to see where the question was headed.

“It didn’t feel real,” said another young woman. “I was worried I was going to wake up and be back under a bridge or something.”

The man from before spoke up again. “Remember what I said about not knowing how to pick what was for dinner? That kind of happened over and over. I’d either hoard everything in case something happened, or I’d stuff my face in case it wasn’t real. Having all this choice is hard to get used to.”

“I crashed once I got into an apartment,” a different man said. “I must have slept on and off for two or three days. It felt so good to have actual bedsheets and a mattress. Also, I ordered a huge pizza and ate it so fast it was scary.”

“You too?” A middle-aged man raised his hand, then swiftly lowered it. “Promepolis pizza is always the best, let me tell you.”

Lio saw where the conversation was headed, and he was thankful to Gueira for exposing the heart of the matter for him. “So, you wanted to enjoy your new luxuries as soon as you got them?”

The middle-aged man screwed up his face upon hearing that. “Boss, I don’t understand how you think these things are luxuries. They’re basic things that people should have. A safe home, a warm bed, proper food… it feels good to have them back. The programs the new government put in place to reintegrate the Burnish really went above and beyond.”

“As they should have,” a woman with a sharp voice said. “It’s like you always said. We’re human beings. It doesn’t matter whether we were Burnish anymore. We can have the basic things we’ve been denied.”

Lio’s mouth hung open, so much was his surprise at how familiar these ideas seemed. Galo had almost certainly said something like this before. Once he regained his bearings, he nodded and followed up. “So, even if I were to… slow down a bit now, would you all think any less of me?”

The murmurs to the negative were overwhelming. “What makes you say that?” a man with distinctive glasses asked. “Why wouldn’t you be able to enjoy the same things we do? Even if you think you’re slowing down or going soft, you can do that. It’s perfectly fine to enjoy yourself.”

The sharp-voiced woman spoke up again. “So, is it wrong for us to want you to be happy? Look, I don’t know what crazy standards you kept holding on to, but you deserve a break.”

“Think of it this way,” Meis said, suddenly enough to make Lio twitch. “You’re not betraying people by living a comfortable life. If anything, you’re living for those that can’t. We have to do our best to live our best lives, even if it means slowing down a bit. We need to celebrate life.”

“That’s…” Lio paused to let the words sink it. Meis, ever on the ball, had hit the nail right on the head. In typical fashion, he and Gueira had teamed up to deal a decisive strike, though it was to Lio’s cognitive distortions, not necessarily an enemy. “That’s a nice thought,” he murmured.

“It’s a good idea,” the middle-aged man said. “The people of Promepolis are ones to celebrate, not to wallow. Even if we endured a lot of grief, and even if not everyone made it to the end, we need to enjoy what we have.”

This time, the table was filled with murmurs of agreement. Lio looked down, feeling silly for ever having thought that he had to hold back for the sake of the others now that everything was over. Everyone present seemed to be doing quite well, even with the adjustment period. No one had pointed out his weight, either, and he thought he was nearly baiting them by wearing one of his usual shirts and no jacket. No one was concerned about that. All they wanted was for him to be happy and to enjoy the life he had been given.

“Thank you,” Lio said in a softened voice, laden with emotion. “You have no idea how much I needed to hear this from all of you.”

“We just want you to be happy,” the first woman said. “Like she said, is that so wrong? We know you want us to be happy, and we want the same for you.”

“Yes, I understand. Thank you,” Lio replied, pouring his efforts into not choking up or crying in front of his people. Even if he was holding himself to an absurd standard, he still didn’t want to break down into an ugly cry in public.

The first man’s phone went off, and he grimaced at his phone screen. “I’ve got to go. My son’s school is calling me again. He’s having a tough time.”

The news put an obvious damper on everyone’s moods, but the reaction was supportive. “It’s a super hard adjustment for the kids,” the sharp-voiced woman muttered, looking through her purse for something.

“If you need any help with him, you can let me know, alright?” the middle aged man said. “It’s important that we all help each other out, more so than ever.”

“I would be willing to talk to him as well,” Lio said, perking up at the opportunity. “At the very least, I could offer emotional support.”

“I’d appreciate it, Lio,” the man said, nodding. “You were always great with the kids, and they needed you the most.”

“Thank you,” Lio murmured once more, choking up on his gratitude and the love he had for his people. “Just let me know.”

The group dispersed as the man left, leaving only the former Mad Burnish generals at the cafe table. “So? How do you feel after all that?” Meis asked, giving his leader a sidelong glance.

“Better,” Lio said. “I’m glad to hear that their narratives line up with my own in their own ways, and I guess I’m also glad to hear that I don’t have to put myself under the pressure that I was.”

“I told you this was happening to everyone,” Gueira said through a smirk. “Everyone struggled with adjusting, everyone’s had big changes in their lives. You’re not alone.”

“I know, and I’m happy to hear that.” Lio sighed heavily, trying to pull through his emotional exhaustion. “I can accept what I’m seeing and hearing. I’m just so glad that no one said I was falling apart or less than capable. They just want me to be happy.” The emotions twinged at him once more, and he felt the prickle of tears at his eyes.

“What’d I tell you?” Gueira chuckled and gave Lio a gentle nudge. “You should go home to Galo and tell him you’ve been enlightened. I’m sure he’ll be glad to hear it.”

“I will,” Lio said, already preparing himself for a slew of I-told-you-sos. “I’ll keep you two posted on how things are going.”

“I’ve already invited you to a group chat,” Meis said, holding up his phone. “Keep in touch.”

****

* * *

When Lio got home, Galo was waiting for him on the couch. “So? How did it go?” Galo asked, watching his partner closely.

“It went well,” Lio replied. “I feel much better after hearing everyone’s stories.”

“Glad to hear it,” Galo said, getting up. “How about you tell me about it while I make dinner?”

Lio nodded, torn between the urge to devour whatever Galo was planning to make and the conflicting urge to try and exercise some restraint. Even with that battle in his mind, he had something he wanted to ask. “Galo, one thing.”

Galo stopped midway to the kitchen. “Yeah?”

A mischievous smile crept onto Lio’s face as he remembered his question. “Can we arrange our photo shoot for tomorrow? I’d… really like it if we could do it soon.”

Galo’s response was swift. “Of course!” he declared, grinning wide. “I’m gonna make you feel like hot stuff tomorrow, just you wait.”

“I can’t wait,” Lio said with a chuckle. “I mean, I can, but the anticipation might be killing me.”

As Galo laughed Lio off and went to get dinner ready, Lio felt his heart thump in his chest. The sensation arose from a mix of excitement and mild anxiety for the next day’s events. He expected Galo to make it fun, but he was still a bit nervous about showing himself, even privately to someone who’d already seen him naked numerous times. Nonetheless, he thought back to what the former Burnish had told him. They didn’t care if he slowed down or softened up in peacetime. They wanted to see him happy, to see him enjoy life, and there was nothing left to be ashamed of.

It would take a while for Lio to truly convince himself that there was nothing to be ashamed of, but damned if he wasn’t going to try.


	8. Private Photo Shoot

Lio stood in front of his and Galo’s bed in nothing but his underwear, turning various shades of red as he waited for Galo to get his phone ready for pictures.

“Don’t tell me the camera’s not working on this thing,” Galo muttered as he swiped and tapped. “I’m not ready for a new one yet. I just figured this one out.”

“Maybe if you quit dropping it on your face at night it’d be more cooperative,” Lio muttered with a short, sharp chuckle. “Hurry up. If you take too much longer, I’m going to lose my nerve.”

“Okay, okay, I got it,” Galo said, gesturing for Lio to move slightly to his right. “Scoot over a bit, then sit down and spread your legs.”

“What? Why?” Lio felt his mind twitch with confusion, but he followed the instructions almost perfectly. Instead of just spreading his legs from side to side, he also kicked them up a bit. “Like this?”

Galo laughed, a warm, cheerful, thunderous sound. “Not really! Do it like you’re sitting on your blazing throne, looking totally like a big boss.”

“Oh, like that.” Lio lowered his legs and assumed his famous “manspreading” pose, resting his chin in one hand. “How’s this?”

“Impressive,” Galo said, poking his phone and waiting for the click of the camera to register. It went off three times. “Three of the same picture just makes it even better!”

“Three of the same picture makes it even more likely for you to accidentally send it to Aina,” Lio muttered. “You’d better keep these photos under lock and key, Galo Thymos.”

“Hey, don’t worry! Remi showed me how to make a password protected folder thing, and he didn’t even ask what it was for,” Galo said as he zoomed in and out.

“Probably because, knowing Remi, he didn’t want to know,” Lio mumbled, rolling his eyes. “I’m glad he didn’t ask.”

“Small blessings and all that.” Galo pulled up a reference image on his phone, then issued new instructions to Lio. “Okay, so now, get up on the bed on all fours.”

“All fours? I didn’t know you were into that.” Lio grinned despite himself and did as he was told. “And then?”

“Oh, shut up. This’ll be worth the set up, promise.” Galo couldn’t help but smile back even as he chided Lio. “Put your arms a bit closer together, maybe stick your butt out a bit.”

“Okay?” Lio did as he thought he was told and then made the mistake of looking down. “This position makes me look like I have boobs,” he grumbled.

“It does not,” Galo grumbled back. “It doesn’t matter. I like your ‘boobs,’ okay? And I’m pretty sure this position would do this to anyone. I think that’s the point.”

“Take the picture already. I’m tired of putting my ass in the air.” Lio was making a fuss, but he was hoping that Galo would take it for the teasing that it was.

“Your ass is fine too,” Galo said, taking another three pictures in sequence. He seemed to be taking the fuss in stride. “Whoops, maybe I didn’t need three of that one. Can you tilt your head just a little to the left? My left.”

“What does the head tilt have to do with it?” Lio still did it. “Is this better?”

“Yes! It makes you look like… uh…” Galo searched for a term that wouldn’t set Lio off. “Who cares? It makes you look cute!”

“I am not cute,” Lio groused, breaking from the position and sitting up.

“Yes, you are,” Galo said, stepping closer with the phone in hand. “You’re handsome, cute, pretty, beautiful, whatever you want to be.”

Lio groaned. “I’m fine with just being tolerably viewable by human eyes at this point.”

“You’re more than tolerably viewable.” Galo took a few pictures of Lio’s grumpy face just to spite him. “I could look at you all day and not get bored.” Sensing that Lio was about to go on a negative tear, he came up with an idea. “Are you ready for the next one? Stand up if you are.”

“The next pose? Fine, sure.” Lio stood up, huffing. “Now what?” When he saw Galo drop to the ground, roll over, and prepare for a makeshift upskirt shot, a pang of panic shot through him. “Not from that angle! All everyone will see is my legs and my stomach!”

“What do you mean, ‘everyone?’ No one else is gonna see this,” Galo said. “Do you want me to show you the password protected thingy?”

Lio sucked in a breath and exhaled it heavily. “No. You’re right. I’ll take your word for it.”

“Good! Now, lean over a bit, and make like a cute girl who’s just found me lying unconscious in a field somewhere,” Galo instructed, fully aware of the wacky nature of his description.

“What?” Lio laughed even as he tried to bottle it in and be stubborn. He leaned over Galo, batted his eyelashes, and pitched his voice up the best he could. “Oh no, who is this wonderfully handsome man who has mysteriously appeared in my father’s field? Will he attempt to steal me away and ravish me when he wakes up?”

Galo cackled upon hearing Lio’s impression. “Oh, yes, I am secretly the Demon Lord’s son, and I will certainly ra- ravish-” He laughed so hard that he dropped his phone on his face. “Ouch!”

Lio couldn’t hold back anymore. “Didn’t I tell you to stop dropping your phone on your face if you wanted it to work?” He was full on laughing now, to the point that he could feel it in his stomach muscles.

“Listen here, you…” Galo picked up the phone and began taking as many pictures with it as he could. “As punishment for being a smartass, I’m gonna take so many pictures of your smart ass!”

“Oh no,” Lio wheezed, attempting to cover his rear even as he was aware that that just drew more attention to it. “If you want to see me be sexy so badly…” He snatched the phone out of Galo’s hands and began taking the most over-the-top girly ducklips selfies he could muster. “Is this better? Is this sexy enough?”

“Oh, yes, more, more!” Galo reached up and yanked Lio down to the ground with him, nearly rolling on top of him as he did so. “Show me them ducklips!”

Lio made an awkward yelp as he crashed to the ground, but soon he was smiling again. “There’s not nearly enough filters on these,” he muttered as he fiddled with the phone to put as many filters and stickers on his photos as possible. “Do you think I should put the dog nose filter on?”

“Please, every chick uses that one,” Galo said, exaggeratedly rolling his eyes.

“It’s going on then,” Lio replied. “Dog nose and cat ears… okay, I think that should do it.” He turned the phone to show Galo his handiwork, a dog nosed cat eared bubble-effected excessively brightened monstrosity.

“This looks ridiculous,” Galo said as he tried to catch his breath. “Amazing.”

“Who are you to tell me anything looks ridiculous, Mr. Matoi?” Lio pulled the phone away from Galo’s grabby hands.

“Hey, you know better than to knock my matois! They’re good stuff!” Galo lunged to try and get his phone back and ended up rolling over Lio. “What the hell! How did you make me do that?”

“I think I should take some photos of you too.” Lio began holding the phone at various angles and tapping to take pictures of Galo.

“Whoa, hey, no, this isn’t about me! You’re the subject here!” Galo climbed on top of Lio as a means to secure his phone. “The model doesn’t just steal the photographer’s camera and have at it!”

“Oh my,” Lio purred, pretending to be surprised at Galo leaning over him. “This is awfully saucy of you.”

“What?” Galo realized he was in a compromising position. “Oh boy.”

“Gotcha,” Lio said as he proceeded to take another heap of pictures of Galo leaning over him.

“Y’know what they say, if you want it to last longer, take a picture,” Galo said with a wide grin. That seemed to disarm Lio long enough for him to grab his phone back. “I bet these will last forever, huh?”

“What do you mean?” Lio thought about the saying to try and parse what Galo was saying. He took it to mean that these moments would last forever, whether commemorated in picture or memory. “Maybe they will.”

Galo gave a short chuckle and rolled off, plopping next to Lio and putting his arm around him. “Whew. Man, you really made me work for that one.”

Lio sighed, pleasantly exhausted from all the laughter. “Good.”

The two laid next to each other for a few minutes, catching their breath and cooling down. Galo spoke up afterwards. “So, how do you feel now? I mean, the pinup thing kind of went sideways, but still.”

“I feel…” Lio nestled himself in the crook of Galo’s arm as he thought his choice of words over. “Happy. Comfortable, even. I feel like I can enjoy myself again.”

“That’s the best thing you could’ve said.” Galo gave Lio a small squeeze, pressing him close. “I’m so glad to hear that you’re feeling comfortable.”

“Mm-hm. I feel comfortable in my own skin for the first time in a long time. I finally understand why you can care for me even while I’m… in less than perfect shape,” Lio said, scooting closer of his own accord.

“Your shape is fine,” Galo said, interlacing his fingers with Lio’s.

Lio gave Galo’s hand a squeeze. “All I can do is thank you for supporting me through my extended tantrum. You helped me break through my misconceptions and learn to love myself and life again.”

“I’m glad,” Galo repeated, adjusting his fingers for a better grip on Lio’s hand. “I hope that someday, you can love you like I love you.”

“It would take me a while to reach that point,” Lio said with a sigh. “I think where I’m at now is a good start. Besides, I’d rather spend my time loving you instead.”

Galo gave a content hum and squeezed Lio’s hand back. “You’re too sweet. Love you too.”

“Yes, I love you,” Lio said as he pressed himself into Galo’s side. “I can’t feel anything else for the man who pours so much warmth at me and does his best to understand me at all times.”

“I do my best,” Galo mumbled, and Lio looked over to see that his eyelids were starting to flutter closed. He was either tired of all the talking or he just wanted to take in the moment. Galo did not pause his action often, so when he did, it was a meaningful pause.

Either way, Lio wasn’t going to try and snap him out of it. He wanted to bask in the warm moment as well. “I love you,” he murmured one more time as he let his eyes slowly close. A cozy satisfaction had settled in his chest, as though he’d gotten all he wanted out of the event and more.

He was ready to walk forward into his life as a normal human, without the pressures of the past on his shoulders.


	9. It's a Good Burger

Lio had requested to return to the burger joint after the pinup date, partly to enjoy a burger without the stress and partly to revisit the Burnish who had begun frequenting the restaurant. Apparently, after hearing that Lio had eaten there, more former Burnish flocked there than ever before.

“A double cheeseburger, huh? Someone’s really going for it this time,” Galo teased as he watched Lio take big bites out of the aforementioned cheeseburger.

Shooting Galo a sharp look, Lio took another bite of his burger, complete with a comical noise of enthusiastic eating. Of course, he wasn’t going to speak while his mouth was full of burger, so he just settled for making grumpy faces.

“Hey, it’s okay. You always look so cute when you’re chowing down on something you enjoy.” Galo took a bite of his own burger, the reprise of the egg and bacon and burger monstrosity. It was a narrow miracle that he didn’t get runny egg yolk all over his face when he did.

Finally, Lio swallowed and set his burger down. “And you always complain at me when I call you out on liking to watch me eat.”

Thoroughly busted, Galo gave a frustrated grunt and shook his head. “Okay, fine, I do like watching you eat! Just not to the extent that you like to think I do.”

Lio gave a small smirk, enjoying the opportunity to get Galo’s goat on this subject. “We’ll test that at home.”

“How many times have we been over this, again?” Galo rolled his eyes and took a spiteful bite of burger.

Before Lio could retort, he saw two familiar figures making a beeline for his table. “Looks like Gueira and Meis found us.”

Sure enough, they had. Gueira raised a hand in greeting. “Hey, guys! How’s it going?”

Behind Gueira, Meis waved but didn’t say anything till they were standing in front of the table. “Someone’s hungry today,” he noted.

Lio made an awkward noise as he looked at his half-devoured cheeseburger. Galo took the opportunity to tease Lio once more. “You should see him go! It’s an experience. He even makes noises when he eats like I do now.” He paused, catching himself because he figured that was going to make things uncomfortable. “It gives me the warm fuzzies to see him go at it with gusto.”

“I’m just glad he’s eating and enjoying himself, period,” Meis said, looking from the burger to Lio to Galo. “It’s nice to see.”

“Don’t tell me you’re on the ‘likes to watch me eat’ train too,” Lio muttered at Meis before shoving a fingerful of fries into his mouth.

Gueira put his hands on his hips as he gave Lio a mock scolding. “Hey, he has a reason for it! How many times did we have to fuss over you to make sure you actually ate?”

“Geez, Lio, everyone’s just happy to see you take care of yourself,” Galo said, sighing and setting his burger down.

Lio rolled his eyes. “Since when can’t you three take a joke? I’m happy, too. Silly as it sounds, it feels good to eat a burger without beating myself up about it.”

“That’s not silly,” Meis said. “That’s a good thing. You’re finally allowing yourself to enjoy normal people stuff.”

“That’s the important part,” Galo added. “You’re not holding back anymore. You’re enjoying yourself to the best of your abilities.”

“I do feel a bit like a glutton if I think about it too hard,” Lio said, a flash of concern crossing his face. “But once in a while, it’s not that much of a problem.”

“Eh, it’s fine. You’ve seen how I eat pizza,” Galo said in an attempt to reassure his partner. “And you’re right. You can’t be totally perfect all the time, you know? Gotta have a cheat day here or there. Everyone knows I do.”

Gueira, ever the wild card, leaned in to sniff Galo’s head. “Yup, he still smells like pizza.”

“The hell? Even I don’t sniff people in public,” Galo sputtered, bewildered.

“Yes, you save it for me in private, and then you pretend to eat bugs out of my hair,” Lio quipped, a sly smile on his face.

“Oh, that’s a good one,” Gueira said with a devious grin. He playfully grabbed at Meis’s arm and tried to pull him closer to sniff his hair, only for Meis to swat him with his free hand. “Ow! You’re so mean!” Meis simply shrugged and chuckled at Gueira’s exaggerated despair.

“Didn’t you sniff Aina that one time?” Lio asked, unsure of how clearly he remembered the incident.

“She was within sniffing distance and I was trying to look at something else,” Galo muttered, rolling his eyes.

“He really is like the fire station’s dog mascot,” Meis mused aloud. “Complete with the sense of smell.”

“Oh, come on! Vinny’s the mascot! Everyone knows that.” Galo made a grumpy face and shoved a few fries in his mouth.

“I wonder about that rat sometimes,” Lio said, his gaze wavering as he mulled Vinny’s existence over. “He’s awfully expressive and clearly no normal rat.”

“Lucia won’t tell me a thing,” Galo said with a shrug.

Sensing that the conversation had derailed, Gueira chuckled and took a few steps away from the table. “Hey, have any others come up to say hi to you while you were here?”

Lio shrugged. “A few people, including our waitress. They all seemed happy to see me, and like they’re doing as well as they can. It’s nice to see.”

“What’d I tell you?” Gueira replied. “Everyone just wants to see you happy. So eat up! We’ll leave you to enjoy your burg.”

“Don’t forget to tip your servers,” Meis quipped, though anyone could tell he was dead serious about the moral of the story.

“Don’t worry, we’ll tip her well,” Galo said.

“What do you take me for? I don’t disrespect people who do things for me,” Lio quipped back in mock offense.

“Just enjoy your meal and think of us telling you to shut up and eat,” Meis joked back as he nudged Gueira forward. “We’ll see you around, Boss. Check the group chat later.”

“I can’t wait to see what amazing ‘man on fire’ gifs Gueira has found now,” Lio said with a chuckle. “I’ll catch up with you two when we’re done here.”

The two former Burnish generals left, and when they were gone, Galo made a whining noise. “Aw, man! Why can’t I be in the group chat, too?”

“Because I’m right here in front of you,” Lio said flatly. “You’re not missing much, anyway. Most of it is Gueira shitposting.”

“I wanna see Gueira’s shitposts!” Galo continued to whine.

“I’ll pick choice ones out for you later,” Lio offered as a means of pacifying Galo. “For now, though, I’m eating.” He shoved another few fries in his mouth and muttered, “Why are these so good?”

“Because they are. Don’t make it more complicated than it is,” Galo said. “You know by now that you don’t have to question enjoying things.”

“Yes, you’re right,” Lio said as he eyed his burger in preparation for going at it once more. “I don’t intend to indulge myself at every turn, but I’m not going to deny myself pleasure because of the past, either.”

“Good for you!” Galo cheered Lio on, reaching across the table to pat his arm. “You sound like you’ve finally figured it all out for yourself.”

“I suppose I have.” Lio’s gaze went to Galo’s hand as a matter of reflex. “At the very least I understand how to balance myself better.”

“And that’s good,” Galo replied, withdrawing his hand. “Starting next week, we’ll get you back in action, promise. No excuses, no worrying about the other muscleheads. If they give you trouble, I’ll put ‘em out, got it?”

“Of course. Thank you.” Lio tried to squeeze his gratitude into his voice, and he felt deeply glad that he had someone as loyal and supportive as Galo on his side. “Though I think my days of sliding under cars are over.”

“Uh, yeah, let’s hope you never have to do that again in the first place. Wait, you what?” Galo’s realization sank in in slow motion, as a lot of his realizations tended to. “You never told me that bit!”

Lio chuckled and shrugged. “It was when I broke out of the Burnish prison. A Freeze Force vehicle drove toward me and I slid under it.”

“Oh, geez, Lio! Every time I hear about things you did I find more things to worry about.” Galo’s concern lingered for a moment before being wiped away by a grin. “Now I’m definitely getting you dessert. I don’t care if it defeats the purpose. I don’t want you sliding under any cars any time soon.”

“I don’t follow, but if I still have room, I’ll be glad to take you up on it,” Lio said with a small smile as he picked up his burger once more. “If only just for tonight.”

“Good! It’s our last last hurrah, promise.” Galo also took a hold of his burger. “Let’s eat!”

The duo cheerfully chowed down on their burgers without further distractions. Lio knew he was making all sorts of weird little noises as he ate, but Galo did the same thing, so he wasn’t too concerned. He’d tease Galo about liking those noises, anyway (and probably get chewed out for beating a dead horse for the umpteenth time). Most importantly, he felt comfortable eating a decent meal in public. There was no sense of awkwardness or fear of reproach.

For a good while, Lio was sure that he was going to be okay. He was also sure that he was going to collapse into one intense and incredible food coma when he got home, but he didn’t mind. He’d have Galo nearby, and that would make it all worthwhile.


	10. What Makes You Happy

When Galo and Lio got home, Lio made a beeline for the couch and plopped down with a heavy sigh. “Was I waddling? Be honest. I’m surprised I can still move after all that.”

“No, you weren’t. Don’t be silly,” Galo said, plopping down right next to him. “I’m always surprised at how much you can put away when you put your mind to it. You really are Matter Eater Lad.”

“I am not,” Lio whined, leaning back and resting one hand on his belly. “It’s not like I ate the plate or anything.”

“Fine, you’re Bottomless Pit Lad,” Galo retorted, gently wrapping his arms around Lio and pulling him closer. As his hand crept near Lio’s stomach, he felt his partner twitch. “What was that? Are you okay?”

Lio shrugged. “Just some residual nerves. I’m fine. But I bet it feels weird to touch my stomach while I’m all blown up like this.”

“If you’re uncomfortable, just say so,” Galo said, watching Lio for any sign of resistance. “You do get the worst food babies.”

Rolling his eyes, Lio scooted into Galo’s side. “I’m not uncomfortable, at least not with you. Maybe a little uncomfortably full, but I have no choice but to wait for that to make its way through my system.”

“If you say so.” Galo reached around to softly trace lines along Lio’s stomach, only to stop when he twitched again. “Are you really okay with this?”

“Yes, I am. It just tickles when you do it that way.” With a low chuckle, Lio leaned against Galo and looked up at him expectantly. “I want you to touch me.”

“Okay, okay.” Cautiously, Galo adjusted Lio for a better angle, and Lio let himself be moved with no complaints. “How’s this?” Galo asked as he resumed tracing lines along Lio’s belly, stopping only to plant a soft kiss on his forehead.

“Perfect,” Lio purred, leaning upwards to kiss Galo back and ending up only getting his chin. “Come on, kiss me like you mean it.”

“Someone’s demanding tonight,” Galo said with a chuckle before tilting Lio’s head up and giving him a proper kiss on the lips, soft and tender. “How’s that? Don’t tell me you’re somehow still horny after eating all that food.”

“Did I say I was? I can ask for a proper kiss and cuddle without needing sex, can’t I?” Lio’s tone was grumpy, mostly out of fatigue. “I’d be useless right now anyway. Moving is annoying.”

“Of course.” Galo grinned as he stroked through Lio’s hair. “I just want you to be comfortable.”

“I am,” Lio said, and he meant it. He’d satisfied his senses as much as he needed to, and with Galo’s support, his heart was full as well. “I’ve gotten used to my ‘extra,’ as much as I can, anyway. I still intend to burn it off eventually.”

“That’s a good plan,” Galo said, kneading Lio’s head in a careful massage. “I’ll be here for you when you do that.”

Lio gave a short, mischievous little hum. “I believe I’ll deflate if we’re active every night. Don’t you agree?”

Galo arched an eyebrow, then burst into laughter. “So much for not being horny, huh? I mean, I won’t turn down a good time, but you’ve clearly got good Galo lovin’ on your mind.”

“Please,” Lio muttered, waving Galo off. “I didn’t explicitly say sexually active, did I? We can go out for nightly walks or whatever else comes to mind.”

“Yeah, yeah, you weasel.” Galo chuckled and gave Lio a solid goosing on the rear end. “Boo!”

Lio jolted but couldn’t hide a laugh of his own. “You have no right to tease me about being horny and then pinch my butt like that.”

“I have rights,” Galo said. “Himbo rights.”

“Should I be worried that you’re willingly accepting the title of ‘Himbo?’” Lio smiled and adjusted himself in Galo’s hold.

“Well, if the shoe fits,” Galo quipped, shrugging and letting Lio make himself comfortable. “I know what I am. I’m comfortable with it.”

“I suppose I can say that to some degree, too.” Lio pressed himself against Galo and was rewarded with a gentle squeeze. The sweet contact lulled him towards a deliriously contented sleep, and yet even as his eyes fluttered closed, he had one important question. “Galo?”

“Yeah?”

“What do you think it means to be happy in this world?” Lio forced his eyes to stay open as he tried to read Galo for a response.

Of course, Galo didn’t always need to be read, as he had a tendency towards saying his thoughts outright. “How do you have the brainpower for deep questions like this? I thought you were going to be in food coma land five minutes ago.”

“Just answer me,” Lio said. “I’ll even let you say whatever comes to mind and take it as an answer. Just be honest.”

“Okay, fine, I can do that.” Galo paused to put his thoughts together. “I think, in order to be happy in this world, you need to start with yourself first. Lots of people lash out at others because they’re unhappy with themselves, so a big first step is being comfortable with who you are.”

Lio nodded. “That makes sense. After what’s happened, I understand that, too.” He looked down for a moment, taking in Galo’s words. “But you can’t confuse being comfortable with yourself with being complacent. You always have to be willing to improve yourself and to understand what’s around you.”

“That’s the best way to put it,” Galo said. “If you wanted to get really snobby with it, you could say it’s…” Here Galo put a fake upper class lilt to his voice. “It’s all about the harmony of the inside and the outside, the yin and yang! Probably something about chakras too!”

“You lost me at chakras,” Lio muttered. “That’d be an interesting research topic. Something about how different spiritual beliefs intersected with Burnish conditions outside of Promepolis…”

“You lost me at research,” Galo echoed. “It sounds like you’re going to have fun with whatever it is, though.”

Lio shrugged. “I’m not much of a research person myself, at least not to the degree that, say, Dr. Ardebit is. Cultural implications are more interesting to me than hard science.”

“That sounds cool, I guess, but it’s also hurting my brain to think about,” Galo grunted. “Are you just getting all deep like this because you’re tired?”

“Maybe. I don’t think I have the energy to think about this anymore,” Lio said through a yawn. “But I still think you’re right. You need to be comfortable with yourself, and then keep an open mind to those around you.”

“Oh wow, I’m right? I pulled that out of my ass,” Galo said. “Come on, Lio, maybe we should just go to bed before you drag yourself to the computer and start reading the wikis for whatever it is you’re looking for.”

“Fine. You’re right about that too,” Lio conceded, slumping slightly against Galo. “Last time I took a ‘wiki walk,’ I ended up on the page of a disturbing yet rather sad genetic anomaly.”

“You’re even using big words. You’re clearly in that weird half asleep zen state where everything makes sense until it suddenly doesn’t.” Galo sighed and nudged Lio to move, all while trying to scoot himself off the couch. “That’s it, we’re going to bed.”

“Fine,” Lio repeated, lazily grunting as he pulled himself up. “I’ll be waiting for you.” With that, he stumbled off towards the bedroom, clearly on his way to food coma land.

“Hey, aren’t you at least going to brush your teeth or change or something?” Galo called after Lio before caving in and following him to the bedroom.

After some coaxing, Galo was finally able to get Lio to do his bedtime routine instead of passing out cold without even going under the covers. Soon, the two were under the blankets, and Galo was surprised to see that Lio hadn’t put on pajamas. “You’re okay in just your underwear? You’re not cold or anything?”

“Mm-hm. After all, I have you and your warm soul to keep me from getting cold.” Lio yawned and snuggled up close to Galo, and Galo put his arm around him. “I’m happy,” he mumbled.

“I’m happy that you’re happy,” Galo replied, nestling Lio in the crook of his arm. “Look at this. It wasn’t so long ago that you were wearing my shirts because you didn’t want me looking at your body. Now you just threw all your clothes off and crawled in bed. You’re either really tired or you’re feeling better.”

“Why not both?” Lio sighed, relaxing in the hold. “Maybe I got too excited in the burger restaurant. That aside, I know that everyone wants me to be happy, and the only one who was putting unnecessary constraints on me was me. So, now I can finally be comfortable with myself.”

“I’m still glad to hear it, every time you say it.” Galo reached over to give Lio a soft pat on the head. “We’re still going to work on getting you back in fighting shape, but I know it’s more than that. We need to learn from this moment in time, and we’re just going to keep doing our best and growing with each other.”

“You’re right. That’s three times in one night,” Lio remarked. “I’m excited to grow with you. I can’t feel any other way for you.”

“Love you too,” Galo said as he adjusted himself to be Lio’s proper big spoon. “Get comfy. I’m gonna hold you, just like you asked me to that one time.”

“No objections here.” Lio turned over and backed up into Galo, doing a sort of backwards nuzzle. “To a happy future,” he murmured.

“Yeah. To a happy future,” Galo repeated to conclude the impromptu toast. “I can’t wait to see what tomorrow brings.”

“Neither can I. It’s a new feeling, and a good one,” Lio said. “Let’s go into that future with clear heads.”

“Exactly.” Galo grinned in the dark as an idea came to mind. “Hey, let’s do this thing again.”

“What thing?” Lio noticed Galo’s fist lingering near his head, and he quickly understood the cue. Smiling to himself, he completed the fist bump, a fond callback to the end of their adventure.

It was moments like these that gave Lio faith that everything would work out in the new world he was a part of.


	11. Omakes!

Here, have two art outtakes because Treah cannot be stopped.

Thank you for reading!


End file.
